1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to windshield wipers. In particular, it relates to a windshield wiper and scraper assembly for removing snow and ice.
2. Description of the Related Art
It is well known that one problem with conventional windshield wiper assemblies is that even while wiping the windshield of a motor vehicle free of moisture and debris, often times the vehicle must be stopped to clear the windshield of heavy accumulations of snow and ice, manually using a scraper. A solution is to provide a windshield wiper and scraper assembly which functions to wipe the windshield clear of moisture and small debris, but which is also used to remove heavy accumulations of snow and ice from the windshield, while driving.
Up to now few such examples exist. One such example, EPO. Pub. No. 0,100,622 (filed Jul. 15, 1983) to Knibbs, discloses a windscreen wiper including a flexible wiping member and two bearing members on each side of the wiping member, the bearing members being brushes or scrapers and having a depth relative to the wiping element which is such that, in use, with the wiping member deflected its free end rests under the free end of the bearing member.
Another example, U.S. Pat. No. 3,892,006, (filed Sep. 16, 1974) to Yasumoto, discloses a rotatable wiper, substantially cylindrical in shape and adaptable for mounting on a conventional oscillating windshield wiper arm. The rotatable wiper uses a plurality of radially-spaced, longitudinally-extending blade-pairs of resilient material formed around a flexible, heated shaft member for wiping moisture and other matter from a vehicle windshield. To remove snow and ice, the wiper is heated by an electrical heating element located in the center of the wiper shaft and connected to an external power supply.
In yet another example, U.S. Pat. No. 6,748,621 (filed Jun. 15, 2004), to Root, discloses a wiper assembly having a set of windshield wipers designed to scrub insects and minor debris from the windshield of a vehicle. This assembly includes a bridge member that has a first and a second end, and a medial portion. The first and second ends are for attachment to a blade member. The medial portion is for attachment to a wiper arm of a vehicle. The blade member is for providing support to a plurality of vertical cleaning members and a cleaning blade. The cleaning members and the cleaning blade are for cleaning debris from the windshield.
Improvements in the prior art, including the foregoing examples, evolve along a common conception in the design of windshield wipers. As such, these designs focus on the inclusion of wiping, brushing, and scrapping members which rotate about a fixed point relative to an oscillating wiper arm. In the prior art, rotation of the wiper frame is accomplished with a variety of cylindrical or linkage assembly connections in the wiper frame. Rotation, of the wiper frame, is actuated either electronically or physically through the frictional force generated while the wiping blade is in oscillating motion and in contact the windshield surface. Oscillation of the wiper arm thereby translates into a back and forth motion of the wiper frame.
While the foregoing examples offer some utility, a major disadvantage in each lies in the fact that, while they do provide for a brushing or scrapping of debris, they do not combine to scrape and lift a load of snow or ice from the surface of a windshield while traveling. The foregoing examples also do not provide for quick and easy installation, and are rather complex in construction. Many of the foregoing examples may also be susceptible to malfunction upon freezing in severe conditions. Thus, it is desirable to provide a windshield wiper and scraper assembly for selectively removing moisture or a mass of snow and ice from the windshield of a motor vehicle, but which is universal for use with a number of conventional wiper arms and is lightweight and simple in construction. The present invention satisfies these needs.